or Association Related to SOGI, 2021

countries often impose legal or bureaucratic hurdles to obstruct their work. Therefore, many sexual and gender minority CSOs choose not to register as such.

Of the 16 countries analyzed, only Bangladesh, Lebanon, Nigeria, and Tunisia restrict expression, civic participation, or association related to SOGI (figure 5.2). Nigeria, which has the most severe stance, has banned the creation of sexual and gender minority CSOs; it explicitly forbids organizations that advocate for or promote sexual and gender minorities’ rights.9 In Bangladesh, restrictions against sexual and gender minorities are based on moral grounds that often prevent sexual and gender minorities from free expression. These limitations criminalize sexual minority status, as well as any conduct that disrupts the “public order,” “decency,” or “morality” of society.10 In Tunisia, the Law on the Organization of Associations prohibits CSOs from any activities prohibited by law.11 Therefore, CSOs do not use the terms “sexual and gender minorities” or “LGBTI” (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex) in their registration statutes. Although Lebanese law does not specifically ban sexual and gender minority CSOs or SOGI-related expression, several laws indirectly restrict free expression. For example, Lebanon’s Law on Associations authorizes the Ministry of Interior to reject any organization’s registration application if the organization is founded on an “unlawful basis.” According to study contributors, many openly sexual and gender minority organizations have been denied registration on this basis, even though the law does not explicitly prohibit registration of CSOs as “sexual and gender minority/LGBTI organizations.”12 In addition, the Lebanese Law on Public Meetings of 1911, which requires prior approval by authorities to assemble, has been used by the General Security Forces on several occasions to disrupt sexual and gender minority events in the country. Furthermore, the Lebanese Penal Code prohibits the possession, making,

FIGURE 5.2

Analyzed Countries with Laws That Restrict Expression, Civic Participation, or Association Related to SOGI, 2021

Bangladesh Lebanon Nigeria Tunisia

4 countries 12 countries

Canada Costa Rica India Indonesia Jamaica Japan Kosovo Mexico Mozambique South Africa Ukraine Uruguay

Yes No

Source: World Bank Group, Equality of Opportunity database. Note: SOGI = sexual orientation and gender identity.